The French health authorities recently decided that the national health insurance system would cover the cost of removing all PIP breast implants (for cases of reconstructive surgery and cosmetic surgery) and fitting new implants for cases of post-cancer breast reconstruction.

On 2nd December 2011, following the publication of recommendations by AFSSAPS (French Health Products Safety Agency), the official representative, chief physician for public health at the Office of Health and Social Affairs in Monaco, sent a letter to the Director of the Princess Grace Hospital asking him to inform the practitioners in his establishment.

As far as the Princess Grace Hospital is concerned, 90 patients have been fitted with the implants in question since 2001. All the women have already been contacted personally by mail and seventeen of them have already been treated.

The Government of Monaco, in accordance with the Monegasque Social Security Office, has decided that the health insurance system will cover the following costs (for both cosmetic and reconstructive surgery) for all patients paying social security contributions in Monaco and fitted with implants from the Poly Implant Prothèse company:

On the one hand, the women concerned are already suffering from serious psychological trauma, which justifies the cost of the new implant being covered in all cases. On the other hand, the cost of these measures is limited due to the small number of patients in this situation.

Consequently, women concerned by these measures are being asked to contact, depending on their social security system, either the Medical Inspection Services for the "Caisses Sociales de Monaco" (93.15.43.01) or the State Medical Services (Prestations Médicales de l'Etat) (98.98.81.39).